Grand Forks County, ND

Grand Forks County presents a value-to-rent underwriting tension: investors able to verify property-level costs should investigate rent durability, while buyers requiring a broad cash-flow cushion should be cautious. In Zillow’s 2026-06 county observation, the median home value was $297,315 after a 7.60% annual rise; median asking rent was $1,169 per month, up 8.07%. The supplied gross yield is 4.72%, before operating costs, so faster rent growth does not establish durable net income.

At a 1.15% effective property-tax rate, tax carrying cost deserves asset-level confirmation. The $1,089 HUD Fair Market Rent is a payment standard, not an asking-rent estimate; the supplied market rent is 7.30% above it, but FMR cannot be substituted into yield. Separately, FHFA’s 2025 repeat-transaction HPI rose 5.36% annually and 30.01% cumulatively over its stated window. That supports Zillow’s price direction but is neither a dollar value nor the same vintage or measurement interval, so the rates should not be averaged.

Listing and workplace evidence is mixed. Realtor.com’s MLS market had 111 active listings and a 48-day median marketing time; supply was lower year over year, but marketing time was longer, and price reductions plus a pending-to-active ratio below parity do not prove closed-sale demand. QCEW annual covered workplace employment increased, while Trade, transportation, and utilities was the largest disclosed private supersector, not the whole economy. Tax-return migration showed a net outflow, with higher average income among leavers. Non-occupants accounted for 81 of 731 purchase mortgages, or 11.08%, defining a buyer-competition input rather than all transactions.

Inland flood is the dominant hazard, and the modeled expected annual building-value loss ratio is 0.11%; it is not a claim history or an insurance quote. The record does not publish vacancy, lease rolls, operating expenses, insurance and flood quotes, property flood-zone and claims data, financing terms, or submarket closed-sale comps. Those gaps prevent a net-income, debt-service, property-specific hazard, or resale-price conclusion. Next checks are property taxes and assessments, achievable in-place rent, flood coverage and deductibles, inspection condition, and comparable closed sales.